THE MAGNATES 93 



Usually lands were given to an abbey for the good of the 

 donor's soul. Thus Alnod of London gave Tooting to West- 

 minster Abbey for his soul ; l but occasionally the father of a 

 person who entered a monastery gave land to that monastery 

 as an endowment for his child. Walter of Laci gave Coleshill 

 (Berks) to the Abbey of St. Mary at Winchester with his 

 daughter. 2 Toret gave two hides at Laverstoke (Wilts.) to 

 Wilton Abbey with his two daughters, and " from these lands 

 they were clothed, till the Bishop of Bayeux wrongfully took 

 them away from the Church." 3 



Attention has been called to the fact that the Commis- 

 sioners did not draw any distinction between the private posses- 

 sions of the King and the Crown lands, but they did realize the 

 difference between the private possessions of a bishop and the 

 lands of his see. T. R. E. Bishop Peter held two-thirds of the 

 Church at Wantage, with 4 hides : " now the King has them, 

 because they were not of the see (quia non erant de episco- 

 patu}." 4 And a distinction is drawn between the private estate 

 of William, Bishop of London, in Essex, and those of his see. 

 Some of the former he gave to increase the endowment of the 

 bishopric. 



Some idea of the surroundings of one of the large monas- 

 teries may be gathered from a study of the statistics of the 

 vill " where lies buried St. Edmund, the glorious King and 

 Martyr." 5 T. R. E. there were 118 freemen with fifty-two 

 bordars under them, fifty-four poor freemen, and forty-three 

 almsfolk, each of whom occupied a cottage. At the time when 

 the statistics were compiled there were there thirty priests, 

 deacons, and clerics, and twenty-eight nuns and poor folk, " who 

 daily prayed for the King and all Christian people ; " there 

 were also seventy-five bakers, brewers, laundry-folk, tailors, 

 shoemakers, cooks, porters, and stewards, "who likewise daily 



1 D. B., I. 32 a 2. 2 /</., I. 59 a 2. 



3 Id., I. 68 a 2. 4 Id., I. 57 a i. 



3 Id., II. 372. 



